“Not on your life,” she responded sickly.
“Mom, the German chocolate cake has my vote.”
“I thought they were all pretty darn good.” Her father patted his stomach.
“I liked the cheesecake,” Michael protested.
“The carrot has my vote,” her mother said.
“Why do we have to choose just one? How about a three-layer cake with separators separating each tier? Cheese cake on the bottom. German chocolate in the middle. And carrot cake on top. Then when it’s cut, guests can choose which piece they would like.”
“Fantastic idea, Rachael!” Her father cheered.
“Then it’s settled.” Rachael confirmed all of the arrangements with the third bakery, who agreed to coordinate the entire thing and have it delivered to the Garden.
Three hours later everyone laid watching TV in the family room nursing the worst stomachache of their lives. Michael still had his camera in hand, hoping to catch something for his Rachael collection. Instead, Rachael fell asleep.
She woke up some time later to the buzzing of her cell phone. It was Colten. “Hey what’s up?” she asked.
“Were you sleeping?”
“Yes. Cheesecake food poisoning, or something like that. I’ll explain later.”
“I’m done with school. Would you like to go to the beach?”
“Sure. I’ll ask my parents and be ready in fifteen minutes.”
“I’ll pick you up then.”
Rachael asked her parents, who of course said she could go. She changed into her bikini and was ready by the time Colten arrived.
It was a gorgeous afternoon for the beach—not a cloud in the sky and breezy, which cooled the beach off just enough to be comfortable. It would soon be high tide, and the waves were just beginning to roll in for the evening. Rachael and Colten decided a long walk would be nice.
Rachael wasn’t sure exactly how far they had walked, but they had been walking for quite a while. She knew in her heart she had to make sure everything between them was okay. The conversation with her brother yesterday had raised some concerns she’d been feeling for a while. Rachael knew if she just ignored those concerns, they would only grow into bigger problems. Better to discuss them right now.
Rachael glanced over at Colten’s right hand, where it was linked with her left. It was then she realized she was wearing her braided surfer bracelet, but he wasn’t wearing his.
Where is his bracelet? How long has he not been wearing it? I’ll bet he has a good reason.
“Colten, I want to talk to you.”
“This sounds serious.”
“No. Not really. It’s just we’ve been apart more than we’ve been together for the past few months, and it has made things difficult.”
“Are you breaking up with me?” He stopped walking and took both of her hands in his.
“No. It’s the opposite. I wondered if you were having doubts or second thoughts about us.”
“Why would you say that? Because, believe me, that isn’t the case.”
A wave of relief washed over her entire being from her head to her toes. “You’ve been so busy lately…having to cancel your visit and then there was yesterday. And now today you aren’t wearing your bracelet.”
He sighed. “Well, the visit couldn’t be helped. My parents have been really cracking down on me. My grades have slipped a little because I’ve been spending so much of my time practicing at the Club. Yesterday was just a continuation of the same thing. If I don’t do well in school, my parents might not let me visit at all. They threatened to take away my Jeep. If that happened, where would we be? I’d only see you when you came home, like on winter break, spring break, and summer break. That’s not very much time together.”
“Oh, Colten, you’re right. I had no idea the pressure they are putting you under with the grades thing. I’m so sorry.”
“Don’t be. I should have told you sooner. As for the bracelet, I caught it on a hook in the bathroom and broke it. Maybe we can get me another the next time I’m in town.”
“Definitely.” Rachael stood on her tiptoes and gave Colten a kiss.
“All better now? I wouldn’t want my favorite girl worried.”
“All better. Let’s turn back. I’m hungry.”
As they walked back Rachael’s stomach growled.
“Let’s grab some dinner at the oyster bar we passed on the way down. I could eat something too. My parents know the owners, and they’ll let us put dinner on my parents’ account.”
“That’s good, because I wasn’t able to hide any money in this bikini.”
“No, I would think not.” Colten winked.
When they got to the oyster bar and went in to have a seat, the hostess who greeted them recognized Colten immediately. They were seated at a back booth and ordered sodas. For dinner they decided to split a bucket of oysters with crackers and lots of hot sauce.
An hour later, they left the oyster bar stuffed and slowly made their way back. They got in Colten’s Jeep and headed for Rachael’s house. When they were pulling into the driveway, Colten took a call from his mother.
“Hey, Mom, what’s up?”
Rachael couldn’t hear the conversation on the other end, only Colten’s responses.
“Yes…no, I took the week off from tennis…yes, I finished the project…I’m dropping Rachael off right now. I’ll be home in a few minutes.”
When Colten ended the call, Rachael could see he was a little flustered.
“Everything okay?” she asked.
“Yeah. That was just my mom. She isn’t happy about my schoolwork and me missing tennis this week.”
“They didn’t know you were taking the week off?”
“Not until she stopped by the Club today and I wasn’t there. I’ve been tired and overwhelmed. I knew I had this huge project due this week, and I needed some extra time to finish it. But now she’s ticked at me.”
“Well, you better get going. Just tell her the truth, and I’m sure she will understand.”
“I hope so.” He smiled and leaned over to kiss Rachael good-bye.
Rachael sat and did homework until very late. Better to knock it all out at once.
By four o’clock in the morning she had finished the entire week’s worth of homework. Rachael wasn’t a procrastinator where her homework was concerned. She would rather just get it done.
*
Wednesday morning she finally slept in. When she rolled out of bed around eleven, her family was waiting for her downstairs.
“Good morning, sleepyhead,” her father greeted her. “We thought we would have a family day. We’re going jet skiing after lunch. Then dinner and a movie. Brittany called. I told her you could see her tomorrow. Today is for us, as a family.”
“Okay.”
Rachael texted Colten and let him know she couldn’t see him today. Tomorrow would be their last time together before she left to drive back to her aunt’s house on Friday afternoon. They were planning on leaving around one o’clock on Friday. Colten would still be in school.
Rachael was bummed out about not seeing Colten today but glad to spend time with her whole family. They hadn’t had much family time together. When they got to the place where her father had reserved the jet skis, Rachael was actually feeling better.
She and her brother got on their jet skis.
“Race ya!” Michael yelled.
“You may try, but I will win in the end!”
Their father was running a close third place, while their mother, always the cautious one, was in fourth place. She wasn’t technically even a competitor in the race. She merely coasted along.
For dinner they docked at a restaurant along the intracoastal, where they all ordered huge baskets of fried shrimp, oysters, and crab, except for their mom, who had a chicken sandwich. Seafood, especially shellfish, really wasn’t her favorite cuisine.
After dinner they leisurely made their way back to return the rented jet skis. A quick stop in the
public restroom and everyone was changed and ready to go see a movie. The movie theater was very quiet this evening, being a school night and all. Rachael had hoped to bump into a few friends there, but on a Wednesday night that was pretty much hopeless. It was times like these she was so thankful for Facebook. She hadn’t seen most of her friends in months. If it weren’t for her Facebook page, she’d have no idea what they were up to.
The movie was great, about a wizard and his battle against evil. Rachael’s parents seemed to enjoy it too, even though it wasn’t their type of movie.
Later that night Rachael lay awake in bed thinking about Colten. Tomorrow is Thursday. I can’t wait to see him one last time before I go home. She fell asleep dreaming about him.
*
At dawn she awoke and decided that, since she didn’t have any homework to do, she might lay out beside the pool. She had her radio blaring and was enjoying the day. She must have fallen asleep for a long time because, when she awoke, Colten was there.
“Hey, baby. What time is it?” She smiled.
He glanced at his watch. “Three thirty.” Then Colten looked behind him, saying, “Hope you don’t mind, but I brought some friends by who wanted to say hello.”
Rachael looked over to see about twenty of her friends standing there. “Oh my gosh! Colten, you are the best!” Rachael jumped up and ran over to where everyone stood. She hugged Brittany and Melissa. Next she hugged TJ and Ellery.
Hmmm. Brittany and Ellery put aside their differences for me. That’s a start. Maybe in time they’ll be friends again.
A bunch of the girls from her prep school were there, including several she had known in cotillion who would also be making their debuts in the spring: Elizabeth, Trudy, Jen, Joanne, and Shelly. Several of her guy friends were there as well.
Rachael spent the afternoon swimming with her friends and catching up on lost time. She told her friends about the date she had selected for her ball and her theme of an English tea and garden party. When the afternoon came to an end, Rachael said a teary, heartfelt good-bye.
“It’s not good-bye forever,” Ellery reminded her. “Just good-bye for now. See you in the spring.”
Colten had to go too. His parents had placed him on restrictions for lying about tennis, and he had to be home before dark. Before he left, Rachael needed to ask him a question. Everyone else had gone home, and the two of them stood hugging good-bye.
“Colten, I wanted to ask you something.”
“Sure.”
“We’re having a dance at school called a Sadie Hawkins Dance. It’s where the girls ask the guys. It’s on Valentine’s Day weekend. Would you like to be my date?”
“I would love to be your date. So it’s set. I will see you then.”
They kissed good-bye.
21
FRIDAY MORNING RACHAEL WAS IN A BIT OF A BAD MOOD. It had been a bittersweet visit for her. Being here in Palm Beach, surrounded by family and old friends, she realized what she had been missing. Maybe they could come back for winter break. As they were driving back to her aunt’s house she decided to ask.
“Hey, Mom?”
“Yes, dear.”
“Do you think it would be possible to come back for the winter break?”
“That’s the plan. Your father can’t travel anywhere, so we will bring Christmas to him. It will be nice. I already checked your school calendar, and you’ll be out of school until the end of the first week in January.”
“Great. Michael and I can email all of our friends and let them know we will be in town.”
“Good.” Her mother seemed a little melancholy this morning too. Leaving her father behind each time couldn’t be easy for her.
Even Michael seemed sad today. He’d spent all afternoon yesterday with his friends as well. Her mother had arranged it. Now the car was so so silent, it seemed like the longest car ride of Rachael’s entire life.
Rachael was helping her mother unload the car when her aunt rushed outside and said, “Leave everything right where it is! We have to get over to the Baxters’ ranch to help them.”
Rachael set her suitcase back inside the trunk and slammed it shut. She had never seen her aunt move this quickly. In less than thirty seconds Aunt Margaret was behind the wheel and tearing out of her driveway, with Rachael, her mom, and brother still in the car.
“What has happened, Margaret?” Rachael’s mom was asking her sister.
“The horses. They got out last night. Someone didn’t properly tie one of the gates that leads into the largest horse pasture. The horses got into the barn and foundered themselves on feed.”
Foundered? What the heck is foundered?
But her mother seemed to understand perfectly. “How many are sick?”
“About twenty. Ginnie called ten minutes ago. They need our help.”
“Doing what?” Rachael asked.
“Walking horses,” her aunt responded dryly.
“What does foundered mean?” Rachael asked as they raced down the Baxters’ driveway toward the house.
“Laminitis, which is commonly called founder, is a condition that can affect two or more of the horses’ hooves. It can have multiple causes and doesn’t always result in founder. In this case, however, it was caused by overfeeding. The horses got into the barn last night and ate way too much. There is no way to know how much feed each of them has ingested, so they all must be treated. The vet has given them bute for pain and has recommended forced exercise as a treatment for ten hours.”
“Ten hours!” Rachael and Michael exclaimed.
Everyone jumped out and raced to the barn. Maysie was currently walking three horses around the yard and house. So was Travis, their mother, and father. There were seven more in stalls that obviously needed to be walked as well.
“If you each grab two horses, it would be a huge help,” Mr. Baxter directed. “Rachael, you can get one out of a stall and please take one from Mrs. Baxter.”
“Yes, sir.” Rachael was wearing flip-flops—not the best shoes for walking horses for the next ten hours. She walked over to Mrs. Baxter and grabbed John from her.
Rachael swiftly led her horses to catch up to Maysie. “Hey, Maysie, this is terrible. My aunt gave me a brief explanation of what founder means, but why are we walking them for ten hours?”
“The vet said they’ll all be very sleepy from the bute. In the worst cases, a foundered horse will just want to lie down. This can be very dangerous and result in permanent damage to their hooves. Exercise also helps the food pass through their digestive systems more quickly. The vet tubed each horse, hoping to make them pass some of the rich feed they ingested last night.”
“What is tubing?” Rachael asked.
“Trust me, you don’t want to know. Let’s just say it works similar to a horsey laxative. The vet inserts a long tube through the horse’s nostril and to the stomach. He then flushes the tube with mineral oil, followed by some water.”
“Yuck!”
“Yep. That’s pretty much it. He treated all of the horses for colic as a result of the overeating. Hence the tubing.” Then, as if they were discussing nothing of grave importance, not to mention disgusting, Maysie asked, “So how was your trip?”
“Fantastic! And Colten even surprised me with a reunion get-together with all of my closest friends yesterday afternoon. I asked him to the Sadie Hawkins Dance and he said yes.”
“Wow! That’s even better! I am so excited for you.”
“What’s up with Travis?” Rachael asked. “He looks upset.”
“Coal’s hooves were the hottest. The vet believes he may be the worst affected by the founder,” Maysie explained.
“Oh, I’m guessing that’s bad.”
“Yes. If he has permanent damage to the laminae, the area of the hoof that is affected, he may not be able to be ridden anymore or worse.”
“I don’t know what to say to him.”
“I wouldn’t say anything, Rachael,” Maysie murmured. “He’s still ticked a
t you, and he broke up with Trisha this week. They had some huge fight. He is in a mood.”
Rachael kept walking. Every few minutes John would stop and stand there. Rachael couldn’t tell if it was the founder or laziness.
“Keep them moving, Rachael!” Mr. Baxter yelled over.
“I am trying, but John doesn’t want to go!” she called back.
“It’s the medicine making him sleepy, as well as the pain he’s feeling in his feet.” Rachael turned and saw Gwin, Levi’s mom, standing there.
“Reinforcements have arrived, honey. I’ll take one.” She reached and took the Bay colored quarter horse named Baby from Rachael.
“Thanks.” Rachael saw that Phil Baxter, Levi’s father, went and took a horse from both her aunt and mother, leaving each of them with only one horse to walk.
Of course, I’m still walking John, if that’s what you want to call it. He will barely go. He needs some groundwork on leading. Lazy horse!
Rachael couldn’t even keep up with Maysie at this pace. Levi came over to take John, saying, “Here. I’ll walk John for a while. Can you go take a horse from Travis?” He smiled.
“Yeah, I’m onto you, Levi. I know all about the bet. But I will go take one of his horses, because it isn’t fair that he should still be walking three.”
Rachael walked over to Travis and said, “Can I take one please?”
“Sure.” He handed her the lead rope for a beautiful palomino colored mare. “Name’s Creamsicle.”
“Creamsicle?” Rachael asked, grinning.
“Not me. Maysie named her.”
“I figured as much.” After a brief pause, Rachael, still walking beside Travis, said, “I’m sorry about Coal.”
“Thanks, Rachael. He’ll be okay. We appreciate you coming to help. But doesn’t that kind of mess up your Operation Avoid Travis Baxter thing?”
Yep, he’s still mad at me.
“I’m sorry about that too, Travis. I didn’t mean it.”
“Didn’t mean it? What is that supposed to mean? You launch a plan to avoid me and then get my twin sister to go along with it?”
“I know, Travis. I’m a loser of a friend. I can only say I’m sorry.”
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